What You Get in the Box

Background

The Thuderhead Creations (THC) Tauren is a mechanical tube mod with a hybrid 510 connection. It comes in a nice velvet pouch packaged in a very heavy-duty metal tube that feels about as sturdy as a Maglight 4D flashlight.

User Impressions

Tube

The Tauren tube itself is made out of either brass or copper (in my case, brass). The cerakote is very hard-wearing and has a nice feeling and texture to it. The engraved logos down the side and on the top of the tube is quite deep and contrasts nicely with the black cerakoted body. The individual serial number at the bottom is engraved quite lightly in comparison to the logo above.

On the “back” of the tube is a curved recess that fits perfectly into the webbing between thumb and forefinger, giving the tube amazing fist appeal.

4 battery venting holes are drilled into the bottom threads around the button, which means your batteries should be placed in with the positive down. As shown in the photo below, there is a small rubber insulation washer glued into the top of the tube where the negative of your battery will sit. One of the biggest advantages of this tube is that it can take an 18650, 20650, 20700, or 21700! I have used all three sizes of battery and didn’t have any battery rattle whatsoever with any of them.

Button

The button is quite unique in its design (see slide show below) and like the tube itself, is engraved quite deeply. It uses a ball bearing fitted inside a PEEK insulator enclosure and a set of four shaped plates that cup the ball bearing to make a connection. The plate and ball bearing design means that, unlike some more traditional designs, no matter where on the button you apply pressure, you will make a connection.

The button on the Tauren is buttery smooth to press for a spring operated button and takes minimal pressure to fire. I measured the button throw at a fairly short 0.9mm.

I have heard that the earlier models were slightly different in design; the ball bearing apparently used to be slightly smaller and would sit inside the button loosely and could roll/rattle around. This is no longer the case, the ball bearing is now ever so slightly larger than the hole in the PEEK material, so it is actually captured between the PEEK and the top cap of the button assembly. I have not experienced any battery or switch rattle at all in using this mod.

Taking the button assembly apart for cleaning is quite easy. The PEEK insulator has ordinary threading while the top cap section uses reverse threading. Aside from that, disassembly is pretty straightforward.

One thing to note: There is NO locking mechanism on this mod. With that being said, the button itself is has a 2mm solid border. You can safely stand the mod up on the table without worrying about it firing and I have not managed to make it fire accidentally. Not having a locking mechanism is definitely a consideration when carrying it around in the pocket though.

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Build Quality

Build quality is great for the price point. The cerakote is done very well, the engraving is sharp and legible with even depth across each letter and nice curved transitions on both the rams head logo and shield on the button.

All of the threads are perfectly smooth with no nicks or snags anywhere.

My Final Thoughts

The overall quality, performance and feel of this tube mod makes it an instant favorite. The slight texture to the cerakote coupled with the thumb indent makes it incredibly comfortable to hold and the indent helps me know where the air holes on my RDA or RDTA are without checking. This probably wasn’t the intention, but it’s a nice touch if it was. Performance-wise, the THC Tauren is a hard-hitting mech mod and performs just as you would expect. The button design gives a very direct feel to power delivery without any noticeable firing delay.

It should be stated that mechanical mods, especially ones with hybrid 510 connections (meaning that the battery comes into direct contact with your tank or dripper) should NEVER be used by a beginner. You need to be confident in your knowledge of mech mod safety and ohm’s law before considering buying something like this. Given that this mod is designed and sold with an advanced user in mind, it’s not entirely surprising that it didn’t come with any instructions or literature. Regardless, it is a little disappointing that there was no mention of safety, ohm’s law, hybrid safe toppers, etc. on or in the packaging.

I get that Thunderhead Creations are assuming that the user knows what they’re doing, they’re probably also assuming that the shop staff will double-check this before a sale is made…but that’s not really good enough in my opinion. It would have been really good to see some warnings discouraging use without the required knowledge… Maybe even some information on choosing an appropriate atomizer for a hybridconnection.

Ryan’s Thoughts

For me, I have always been drawn to ease and simplicity when it comes to my vaping experience. Unlike many vaping enthusiasts, I prefer to put as little time into building as possible. I love convenience. I’m a closed system kinda guy, a somewhat a pod enthusiast. That doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate advanced hardware or the exceptional flavour from an RDA, RTA or an RDTA, especially once built and ready to fire!

I must admit holding a cylinder mech mod has always been foreign to me. Almost like holding a baton in a relay race hoping not to drop it. Trying to hit the fire button always seems like a bit of a challenge, like picking up a guitar for the first time, putting your fingers on the wrong notes.

A whole new experience was born when a gripped the Thunderhead Creations Tauren mech mod. With such ease, my finger found the fire button, no shuffling no movement just natural comfort that created fired off a seriously satisfying hit! I found my self-glued to this mod for a whole day. I guess this was the first time I felt confident holding a cylinder mech mod.

This mod just molds to your grip or as they say “fits like a glove”. It also Oozes style and carries a good weight (which is something that is important to me). Nothing worse than constantly having to pull your pants up every 2 seconds!

While this is a mod I really like, there is still a lot for me to learn about mech mods, so I definitely would not recommend this being purchased right away for beginners. But hey, If you get the chance to have a go at the THC Tauren mech mod you’ll most likely accelerate your learning to lose those Mech mod training wheels! It’s a winner in my eyes!

Overall

Currently located in Sydney, Australia, I have been vaping since 2009 and became active in the e-cigarette industry in late 2015. Since then I’ve had the pleasure of visiting over 700 shops in 6 countries.

Vapetrotter.com is the global resource for vape store locations and travel information, with over 37,000 vape stores listed in 106 countries, along with necessary travel information for anywhere on earth.